I would love to see Speakman and Ghisolfi deliver another recruitment masterclass before the transfer window closes, but I am totally relaxed about the prospect of finishing the season with the players we currently have.
It’s the January transfer window, traditionally a time of angst for long-suffering Sunderland supporters. In recent years we have been scrabbling around to fill gaps in the squad – the elusive “proven striker”, a battle-hardened centre-half to help with a defensive injury crisis, or a midfield maestro to replace a stricken Corry Evans.
This season is different and, for once, I am not actually worried whether or not we sign anyone in this transfer window. Don’t get me wrong – in years gone by Sunderland have picked up some January gems. Last year it was Enzo Le Fée – a transfer that literally no one saw coming. Could Championship Sunderland prise such a supremely talented midfielder away from Serie A? Thankfully we had an ace in the pack – the relationship between Le Fée and his fellow Frenchman Régis Le Bris proved crucial as we completed an improbable acquisition.
Ten years previously, January 2015 heralded the arrival of a genuine Sunderland legend. In what could properly be described as the heist of the century, Jozy Altidore headed to the MLS to join Toronto while Jermain Defoe arrived on Wearside from the opposite direction.
Other than January 2022, which heralded the arrival of Jack Clarke, Patrick Roberts, and a young Irish lad by the name of Trai Hume, and the previous year when the Loch Ness Drogba signed, winter transfer windows have been more Will Grigg and Jaden Danns than anything exciting.
But that is not why I am so relaxed about this transfer window. It is more that improving the current squad is going to be very difficult in what is a notoriously challenging January market.
I am setting myself up to be shot at but, in my view, when the AFCON players return we will be going into the second half of the season with a stronger squad at Le Bris’ disposal than he had in August.
When the season kicked off with a resounding thumping of West Ham, Nordi Mukiele, Brian Brobbey, Bertrand Traoré, and Lutsharel Geertruida were still to sign. It was a month before Brobbey or Geertruida made their debuts against Crystal Palace, and Traoré first appeared two weeks later.
They joined a squad with Dennis Cirkin and Romaine Mundle sidelined by long-term injuries.
Fast forward to now and the picture is very different – Mundle and Cirkin are both fit, with the latter putting in creditable performances against Manchester City and Spurs in the AFCON absence of Reinildo.
Brobbey completed his first full 90 minutes against Tottenham in addition to his thumping finish, and the burly and brutal Dutch striker is looking very much the part of an effective Premier League hitman. What he probably needs is someone to get closer to him, as Enzo Le Fée did to create his goal.
I have seen calls for the signing of a right-winger – I am not joining in with them. Bertrand Traoré is likely to return this week, and the relative veteran has clearly been delivering what Régis Le Bris wants in his system, having established himself as a regular starter. In addition Eliezer Mayenda has shown enough threat against Manchester City and Tottenham that he offers a genuine option to replace Traoré in the latter stages. He also has the potential of playing closer to Brobbey as a second striker.
Elsewhere there are no obvious gaps – Roefs is firmly established between the sticks. Defensive options are strong – Hume, Geertruida, Mukiele, Ballard, Alderete, Reinildo, and Cirkin are all fit and available. In midfield Xhaka, Diarra, Sadiki, and Le Fée will cause a selection headache for Le Bris, with Geertruida and Rigg able to step in.
On the left wing Simon Adingra is starting to show why we were happy to trade him for Tommy Watson; Chemsdine Talbi has already demonstrated the threat that he brings. Romaine Mundle is still getting to grips with Premier League-standard defenders but has already shown that he can deliver the defensive graft that Le Bris’ system demands.
If I had to pick one position I would like to see strengthened in this window, it would be another central midfielder. But where the hell do you find another Granit Xhaka?
Before anyone slings the “lack of ambition” accusation at me, let me say this clearly – if there is a player (or players) out there available at a not-extortionate price, let’s go and get them. Offer me another Le Fée or a Defoe and I’ll snap your hand off (up to the elbow!).
But I don’t expect that the Louis-Dreyfus regime will sanction any acquisition unless it is a player who will genuinely improve the squad and, such is the quality now available to Régis Le Bris, that will not be easy.
Just as importantly, any new arrival will have to possess the right character to fit comfortably into the mentality of the squad that Le Bris has so carefully curated, incorporating the best of the squad that achieved promotion with the high-quality summer signings, and fully buy into the “’Til the end” spirit that typifies the Sunderland of 2026.
I would love to see Speakman and Ghisolfi deliver another recruitment masterclass before the transfer window closes, but I am totally relaxed about the prospect of finishing the season with the players we currently have. Without the AFCON contingent we have held our own. With them back in the fold, no one will relish facing the Black Cats.
Category: General Sports
